News

As climate change continues to pose a growing threat to agricultural and food systems now and in the future in West and Central Africa (WCA), the region's stakeholders have realized that anticipation of the various future scenarios is more necessary than ever, for an effective and appropriate response to the current and future effects of climate change. 

The key is to take advantage of prospective analysis, based on past and present events, to better prepare for the future.

Prospective analysis aims to formulate different scenarios of vulnerability, to inform decisions that will enable us to be better prepared, by determining which technologies and innovations will be best suited to counter the effects of climate change".

Dr Emmanuel NJUKWE, Director of Research and Innovation at CORAF.

Incidentally, "CORAF's Strategic Plan 2018-2027 places particular emphasis on foresight, i.e. the modeling of future scenarios in order to draw conclusions about actions to be taken in the present, to build consensus and inform decision-making on research priorities," says CORAF's Director of Research and Innovation.

In collaboration with the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) for Africa (AICCRA) project "Accelerating the impacts of climate research", CORAF recently held a two-day workshop in Saly, Senegal, for WCA players involved in developing climate-resilient agriculture.

The aim of the meeting was to map out their needs in terms of foresight analysis capacity, so as to better respond to them with adapted, tailor-made capacity building.

In fact, in addition to assessing regional capacities for prospective analysis in WCA agricultural and food systems, the workshop enabled us to draw up a training and application plan tailored to these needs, in order to strengthen regional capacities in this field.

"The Saly meeting enabled us to pinpoint real needs and challenges in terms of prospective analysis, and to develop a training plan in line with these needs," observes Dr. NJUKWE.

"It is expected that the training plan developed will support efficient capacity-building for stakeholders, who will be better equipped to foresee the best climate-smart solutions for sustainable agriculture, which will guarantee food and nutritional security for populations".

The workshop was attended by 25 participants, including some members of the CORAF Executive Secretariat and AICCRA project staff, members of the cohort who benefited from a previous foresight analysis training organized by CORAF in February 2018 in Accra (Ghana), and partners from the Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme ex-Pillar 4(CAADP-XP4) and the Scaling-up Agricultural Technologies and Innovations to Increase the Resilience of Production Systems and Family Farms in West and Central Africa(TARSPro) project.